Adoptive Archers
by charliedee
Summary: Legolas is just a normal princely elf, with the exception of leaving Mirkwood to shoot targets in the forest every day, but when he is dumped with three children, being Merida, Katniss Everdeen, and Clint Barton, in the span of a few years, his life changes entirely. Perhaps not for the worst, but definitely different from the norm.
1. Chapter 1

[**Part 1**: Prologue: Meet Merida]

"Prince Legolas?" A soft voice had echoed off the creamy white marbled walls of the kingdom, reaching the young elves ears. This piked the mans interest, as he turned his attention down the vast corridor, scanning over the area and spotting the source of the noise. A guard that had traveled with him and his father to Rivendell, he could tell by the colors he donned. "Prince Legolas, your father has called for your presence."

The Wood elf raised a single brow and cocked his head a tad, trying to think of something his father would want from him. "Did he say what it is he wanted?" The elven guard merely shook his head, his long blonde hair being thrown askew across his chest and shoulders.

"He had only requested you meet him in the mapping chambers in the East Wing, if you would follow me." With that, the guard turned on his heels and briskly retreated back towards the corridor, the arrows in his quiver loosely swishing around.

The Prince's brows knitted together in confusion, thinking back to what he had done in the past 24 hours that may have made his Ada mad, yet he came up empty handed. Perhaps his father needed him to do a task he could not do himself? No no, Thranduil had men for that. Mayhap it was a task needed by Lord Elrond.

The guard of Mirkwood pressed his palms against the large ornate door to the mapping room and pushed them open, the hinges making a deep creaking voice as the two elves entered the large room. The mapping room was quite something, bookcases lined the shelves, stocked with old and new books that Lord Elrond had collected over the years, collecting a thin coat of dust. In the middle of the room sat a table with a large tattered beige map, indicating the many towns and regions. That's where a few men were standing, speaking to each other quietly in Sindarin, the Prince spotting his father immediately.

"Ah, father. I was informed that you needed to speak with me."

Thranduil turned from speaking with the elven man in front of him and faced his son, both pairs of blue eyes meeting at the same time for a small moment before the elder of the two began speaking. "Yes, Legolas. Near the break of dawn a guard patrolling the outer skirts of Rivendell, near the hidden passage, found something that should not have been there." Thranduil had explained, folding his hands into the excessively large sleeves of his robe.

Legolas nodded slowly, still not understanding where he fits in. "And what did he find?"

"The patrol guard had found a small bundle of what appeared to be tattered blankets and silken linens, but when he had unfolded the many layers, he uncovered a child." Thranduil glanced over towards the door opposite of the bookshelves and watched as it opened slowly.

A woman had stepped in, and in her arms lay the small child silently sleeping away, it was now bundled up in clean sky blue silken linens that flowed freely through the womans slender fingers. "That is odd." Legolas had commented as the elf woman stood silently beside Thranduil and Lord Elrond. It was not common to find abandoned children around the Hidden Valley, that sort of event mostly happened around the poorer areas, where families could not afford to feed another mouth.

"Yes, it is." Thranduil had commented as his blue eyes tracked over to the baby in the elven womans arms, it's little arms clasping the silks gently. "Now Legolas, I am assigning you the care over this child."

Legolas' brows knitted together as he was taken aback. He blinked and tried to figure out if his father had meant something else, other than the surprising words that just came out of his lips. "Er, Ada- I will have non of it Legolas, I've asked you multiple times for a grandchild and you continue to fail me. You will take care of this child and realize the joys of raising a child."

Joys, funny Thranduil thought that. At least that's what Legolas thought when his father spoke, another crease adding to his brow. Legolas was _mainly_ raised by a nanny, but he spent time with his father, just not the essentials of childhood. The 'joys' he had with Legolas would be when Legolas had already been quieted down from his toddler tantrums, and quietly played with his toys. Thranduil never really experienced the hard parts of raising a child.

"But father, is that even an elven child?"

"No, it is not. It is a mortal female."

Legolas took a deep breath in through his nose and shook his head a tad, crossing his arms over his chest stubbornly. "I do not want to get too attached to this child, Ada, one day I will have to bury her."

"Son.. You would give her a good life, and you will share good memories." Thranduil explained once again as he reached his long arms out towards the woman beside him, and carefully placed them underneath the bottom of the bundle. Slowly, he brought the young girl up and against his chest, his eyes softening when he viewed the little girls face. "Besides, I am not letting you give me a no."

Legolas nervously watched as his father paced over in front of him with the tiny little bundle snuggled up against the soft fabric of his fathers robes, his eyes immediately attaching themselves to the little round face. Then, Thranduil had placed the light wrapped child into Legolas' arms, carefully at that.

The first thing the elven Prince noticed, was a thick red curl laying against her tiny little forehead, shining underneath the rays of sunlight from the sunroof. He nervously licked his lips and brought his hand up, gently petting her tiny little fingers that clasped the sheets so daintily. _She will greatly stick out amongst the others in Mirkwood. _The Prince had smirked to himself, imagining a little red headed girl running down the streets with her red curls in tow.

"Did she come with anything?"

"The blankets were of plaid design, red and blue. Neither Lord Elrond or I can figure out which region the design belongs to. The rags don't matter, they are riddled with holes and dirt." Thranduil spoke as he strode over to one of the large bookshelves, pressing his long fingers against the spine of a random book. "Ah, tucked underneath a layer of her blankets was a small note, a hastily scratched name was all that was written." He had gestured with his eyes towards the small dirty note that lay atop the glass table, just waiting for Legolas to read it.

Legolas bent slightly and got the note in-between his index and middle finger, seeing nothing on one side of the tattered little piece of paper, which was ripped out from a journal, or perhaps a book. He turned his fingers eagerly and had to squint just to manage reading the chicken scratch.

"Mmm.. Meerr?" He squinted a tad more, trying to get the last few letters of the little girls name. He did not notice Lord Elrond pacing over to him and snatching the note away from his fingers, reading it for himself.

"Her name is Merida, Legolas." Lord Elrond forced himself not to roll his eyes at the elf before him, gently placing the note back down onto the glass table. _Perhaps raising a child will tie Legolas down so he need not leave all day to shoot targets in the forest. _Elrond had chuckled inwardly at the thought and crossed his arms over his robe clad chest.

The Elven Prince tried to force a smile back, but his happiness overwhelmed his willpower and a large toothy smile surfaced on his face, beaming brightly, gradually growing bigger as the child stirred for a moment, her tiny eyelids beginning to open.

Little Merida had stared up at Legolas with glimmering eyes, as blue as the ocean and as clear as the sky on a beautiful day, amazing her adoptive father. Her tiny brows furrowed as her one lock of hair spilled over in-between his eyes, causing her to go cross eyed as she stared at the deep red color of it. She tried desperately to grasp the red lock, but she could not bring her arm up even to touch the end of it, causing her to be further intrigued yet angered. Merida shook her head to the best of her abilities, yet the curl remained where it was, her eyes remained crossed.

The newly made father laughed heartily, reaching over and gently moving the curl to the side of her head, relieving her of her criss-cross eyes. "You know, maybe this turn of events wont be such a hassle." He had whispered to her secretly, a smile still played on his lips. "Little Merida."

**xxx**

_A/N: Well, I saw a photo on Tumblr of Legolas holding 'children leashes' and Merida, Katniss, and Clint were on the leashes, so I got some inspiration from that ! I honestly don't know if there's a fic out there like this, and I'm sorry if there is, but I really needed to write this ! Please note that this is the prologue, so of course coming chapters would be longer and have more to them, so please don't be bored !_**  
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_Please review if you liked it and want me to continue?  
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_Disclaimer: I don't own any characters, just plot line.  
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	2. Chapter 2

[Part 1: Merida]

_You know, maybe this turn of events wont be such a hassle_. Legolas had remembered telling the child resting in his arms at the time, at that came from the bottom of his heart. But boy was he wrong now, only realizing this when Merida would require his immediate attention every few hours in the night when she tried to sleep.

Of course Elves did not require to sleep during the night, but since this adopted mortal child was, well, mortal, she needed to be put to rest twice a day. Legolas never strayed far from her highly festooned nursery (that Thranduil absolutely insisted on), in fear that he may not hear her little cries for his attention and bother the other dwellers of the castle. She was quite possibly the loudest that resided in the castle, perhaps even all of Mirkwood in Legolas' mind.

Legolas' brow twitched when he strode into her room and her wails for him had died down, only small whimpers came from her parted lips, her big blue eyes staring up into his eyes, glimmering brightly. As seconds passed, a single brow raised as she came completely silent and reached up to him with her chubby little arm, indicating that she wanted to be picked up into his arms. "Why is it you were crying?" The Prince questioned as he slid his hands underneath her arms and heaved her up against his chest, keeping his gaze on her radiant face.

Merida merely stared up at him with big round curious blue orbs, one hand clenched his jerkin while the other hand laced themselves into his long blond hair, leaving his question hanging. Well, it's not like she could have answered even if she wanted.

He sighed and rolled his eyes with a smile on his lips, bringing his hand up to the mortal youngling and gently petting her full head of small luscious red curls, that shined underneath the candle light of her nursery. "Your hair is growing fast, and very big." Legolas inspected the child, indeed her hair was growing at an impeccable rate, not of which he had ever seen in his many years. He grinned as he took a small ringlet in-between his fingers and thought of a specific race. _She has hair like a dwarf. _Legolas chuckled inwardly as he let the curl fall from his fingers and back to join the many other tresses sitting on her head.

"I imagine you are hungry at this hour?" Legolas questioned his adopted child as he sharply turned towards the opened doors of her room and began leaving, gently grabbing the handle of the door and pulling it closed behind him. He strode down the corridor towards the royal kitchens coolly, where he would put together the many things she would put in her mouth, a lot of things in the kitchen she wouldn't even look at, and it would fly to the floor.

The doors to the kitchen were wide open, inviting to any elf in Mirkwood with the delicious smells wafting through, even compelling Legolas to know what the cooks were up to. In a few moments, Merida was placed upon a counter by her father, watching him intently as he stepped towards another set of doors in the kitchen, pulling them open slowly.

"Mmmm." The red head murmered as she looked around the kitchen, recognizing the faces of the kitchen staff immediately, remembering how Legolas was dumbfounded as to what to feed her the day he had gotten her. She snapped her head to the other side and watched as the male elf approached her with a handful of the few foods she liked.

Merida reached out to him with her chubby little arm and tried grasping the ripe red fruit he held out for her, her little fingers wrapping around the fruit and bringing it in front of her. She smiled happily and chomped down on the red fruit, immediately staining her lips and little spots on her cheek. "Mmm!" The youngster giggled and pressed her messy hands down onto the counter, before reaching out and taking more fruit from her father.

Legolas recoiled his hands after she had taken the rest of the fruit he held out for her, wary about her strawberry covered hands that he certainly did not want everywhere. However, it was unsightly for a princess to have bits of strawberry on her rosy cheeks. With a smile, he head reached over the counter and grabbed a small white linen that was laying around, and brought it to her face, making sure he got every last little tidbit off her.

"You always seem to make a mess with whatever you are eating." He had informed her once he set the rag down onto the counter and wiped that down as well, not wanting to bother the kitchen staff with the little mess she made when they had better things to do. The elven prince quickly wiped up the remains of berry juice off her hands, her face, and the counter once again before tossing the rag away into a small wicker basket against the wall of the kitchen.

"Ah, Legolas." A voice sounded from the other end of the kitchen, a tall elf entering the kitchen gracefully, gazing around at the staff in approval. His lips parted once more to speak to the younger elf. "How is raising a child for you? I hope you are fairing well."

"I've grown quite attached to Merida." Legolas admitted with a smile as he looked down to the little red head staring up at him from her seat on the counter, patting her head gently. "So it has been going well." He watched as his father nodded in approval as he coolly strode through the maze of the kitchen towards his son and grandchild, wanting to take a better look at little Merida.

Legolas watched with a smile as his fathers brow twitched, his blue eyes concentrated on the mop of red curls atop Merida's head, something he only saw in _dwarves._ The elven King shook his head at the mere thought of dwarves and refocused on the small tot just stared up at the royal man with her curious blue eyes, a small smile on her shell pink lips as he cracked a smile, daintily petting her head.

"Well, I am glad that you're quite fond of her." Thranduil spoke clearly as he crossed his arms behind his back, glancing back up to his son, and not a hair was out of place, nor his 'tiara' had shifted. Thranduil seemed to glow when he stood in the middle of the kitchen, perhaps it was his bright blonde hair? Or even his silvery robe? Legolas couldn't tell, but he sure did look royal. At least compared to the Prince of Mirkwood, in his dark greens and browns, and not to mention fully equip bow and arrows on his back. "I'll be taking my leave."

"Goodbye, Ada." Legolas watched his father coolly stride through the kitchen and out of the open doors towards the outdoor corridors and rest of the castle.

Splat.

His eyes immediately shut upon impact by instinct, something had hit his cheek and he had not known what. _I swear.._ His blue eyes open, whipping his attention over to the child that sat on the counter in front of him, a mysterious color of some kind of food was clenched in her tiny balled fist, giggles erupted from within her tiny being.

The Prince felt it slide down the side of his cheek slowly, leaving a thick trail of -something- on the left cheek. It slid until the substance had hit his jaw line, and slipped before he could cup it with his hand, at least half of the goo slowly, as if time had stopped- and onto his clean jerkin. The other half slid down his neck quickly, finding it's way through the collars of his undershirt and jerkin, seeping into the light blue silken fabric.

A cold shiver was sent flying through the elves spine, jolting him immediately like an electrical current. In one swift movement, his much large hand gently grabbed her little arm, inspecting the goo in her fist. "What is this..." His brows knitted together when he closely inspected it. "Where did you get thi..." Just as the words left his mouth, his eyes landed upon a jar.

A large jar that was opened, and apparent that a little handful was taken out. It was jam that one of the cooks had set aside for some meal that they were preparing, and apparently not thinking about putting an opened jar of jam near a curious toddler. "Merida..." Legolas let out an exasperated sigh, throwing his head back in part disbelief, part 'why did you do such a thing.'

"And I just cleaned you up!" A lopsided grin found it's way to his mouth as he looked back to his little Merida, shaking his head playfully at her. He pressed his fingers to her palm and scooped out the remaining dark red jelly that coated her fingers and found it's way underneath her fingernails, letting the jelly fall to the counter in a jiggly mess.

Again with the rag. Legolas reached over and retrieved the rag off the counter, folding it in half before bringing it up to his face, slowly wiping the stained jelly off his face, leaving a streak of dark red on the rag. He folded it once more, beginning to wipe his neck free of the goo. Finished with the jelly filled rag, he tossed it against the counter, looking back down at the child giggling up at him. "Are you mocking me?"

He slid his hands underneath her arms and pulled her up against his chest, briskly turning away from the kitchen staff and back towards the door they entered through. "I'll have to give you yet another bath." He reached over and gently pinched her rosy cheeks, and the two descended down the hallway to the nearest bathing room, for yet another bath.

**xxx  
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_A/N: Well, here's the seond chapter! I just wanted a little bit more semi-one-year-old Merida before making her a tad older and continuing on from there, and after Merida's little chapters with Legolas will come a new child ;) Please leave a review if you liked it and want me to continue!  
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_Reviews:  
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_seafarer: Hehe thank you ! I was watching Brace whilst writing and conjuring ideas for the fic, so her big blue eyes just hit me! Thank you for reviewing!  
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_Guest: I would never make a Thranduil hate human fics, unless it was directed at that sort of thing. I like Thrandy more sassy, y'know, sassy Thrandy. Thanks for the review!__  
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_Mizuki Hikari: Wapow! Brave! I believe that Merida would be the one that connects with Legolas the most, and I *really* am going to work hard to incorporate their shared connections and such. Thanks for the review!  
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_Disclaimer: I don't own Brave/LOTR characters.  
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	3. Chapter 3

[Part 1: Merida]

Blades of grass bent harshly towards the earth, firmly pressing against the soft brown dirt and slowly bending back upwards towards the sky as the foot lifted off the ground, this process repeating until the pair of feet had stopped. It was a beautiful day, the bright yellow sun was beating it's rays down onto the elves of Mirkwood, twas certainly a day to be wearing thin silken dresses and over shirts - and Legolas thought it was a lovely time to leave the stuffed castle grounds where busy servants were constantly in his way, so he had brought Merida to a meadow he loved.

The trees surrounding the beautiful meadow had circular wooden cutouts hanging by thin strands of dark brown twine, double knotted. Each wooden cutout had multiple painted circular lines, one blue, one red, the middle yellow. To each cutout were three or four arrows, all in the yellow bullseye. Legolas decided to collect those later - he had no time to go around to each tree and pull them out individually.

The Elven Prince set his prized possession down atop the worn wooden table in front of him that he had moved into the meadow quite some time ago, still donning the marks and scratches he made when he was just an elfling with wooden blades. A gentle smile surfaced when he heard the slight crunching of grass, little legs running towards him from the small play area where he sat his daughter Merida to play.

"Can I shoot an arrow?!" Legolas heard her question as she quickly approached the wooden table, gripping the edge of the table with her wee little fingers. The table was taller than her, so all Legolas could see was the top of her wild red mane and her fingers clenching the wood. The little girl stood up on her tippy toes and stretched her arm out as far as possible, grasping his much larger bow and pulling it off the table.

The Princess tried to very hard to keep hold of the bow, determined that she, Merida, would shoot an arrow for the very first time. By this time, Legolas has maneuvered to the other side of the table, leaning over and resting his elbows against the firm wood of the table, watching her with a smile. A bright smile surfaced on her lips, her big blue eyes glistening brightly in the bright light in the meadow. "Can I? Can I? Can I please?" Once the words had hurriedly left her mouth, her little feet had let out, this dang bow was just too big for her too hold! Merida fell right on her bottom and onto the grass beneath her to cushion her fall, laughter erupting from the child.

"Not with that." Legolas had informed her with a caring smile, looking over his large bow compared to her tiny frame, imagining her trying to shoot with it. Of course this elf had planned for her to finally ask to shoot an arrow, she'd watch him shoot arrows with glued eyes every time he brought her to this meadow, her eyes filled with anticipation. He fingered the small light colored wooden bow that was on the table, switching his glance between her radiant face and the bow that was just her size.

Legolas grasped the bow and pulled it off the table, kneeling beside her sitting body. "You can use your very own bow." He held it out in front of her face, and slowly, her shining blue eyes widened, looking up at her father happily. Merida's arms reached out and grasped the smooth surface of her first bow, excitedly gasping in the process. She looked up at him with a sweet little smile plastered on her face, the 'is this really mine' look in her eyes.

"Go on Merida, there's a target just over there." With a smile, Legolas pointed out towards a target standing with the help of a small wooden easel, not a single arrow pierced the wood. The Prince watched happily as she scampered to her feet and dashed over towards the target, bow and arrow in hand.

With long strides of his legs, Legolas was at her side, his arms crossed, and ready to see what she could do at the age of five. Merida looked up at him before notching her arrow onto the string of her bow, looking over at the target, and letting go of the arrow.

Well it would have been a miracle if she had actually gotten the arrow onto the target, but practice makes perfect. Merida let out a small huff, staring at the arrow that had dug itself deep into the earth, almost hidden in the thicket of the luscious green grass. Her little fingers gripped the bow with all her might, a little disappointed and angry with herself that she could not be as good as her father.

Legolas still smiled - proud as can be that she had actually let loose an arrow, many of the elflings in Mirkwood could do no such thing until they were at least ten or eleven. He kneeled beside her and began to speak. "Draw all the way back to your cheek, keep both of your eyes opens, and let it loose."

She gazed over at him and nodded with an excited smile. Perhaps she would get it this time?

"I missed it." Merida stated blankly, as the arrow had went way way over the actual target and flown into the forest, and probably to never be recovered again amongst the trees and bushes. Her brows furrowed as she stomped, turning around to face Legolas. She watched as he had reached over and pat her head, his face beaming.

"We have everyday to practice, young archer."

**xxx **

_A/N: Well hurp, here's the next chapter, and the last of wee little Merida being an only child mwahahaha. But of course each child will continue having their little moments with their dear Ada, so don't fret. :) Next will be our little Katniss Everdeen from the ever so popular fandom of The Hunger Games, and all the trouble she brings along. Review Review Review!  
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_Reviews:  
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_ yuki . Suou: Yeah, I find it hard to imagine Legolas taking care of a young child. If anything I could only see him with a child that's already a young adult elf or something. But it's also funny to make him suffer, which he hasn't quite endured... Just yet ;)  
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_seafarer: Yes, just like any toddler, but Legolas, being the elf he is, makes it funny to be put in these certain situations. Espeially with the next two kids coming into the picture shortly, then will the fun come.  
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_Disclaimer: I don't own Brave or LOTR.  
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	4. Chapter 4

[Part 2: Katniss]

"Ah, Legolas. I'm glad you've come as quick as you could." An obvious voice broke through the silence of the Mirkwood mapping room, a royal elf slowly striding around the room with his eyes on the other - rolling his eyes for the other to see. A single brow rose at the other, his blue eyes staring blankly at the other as he awaited a reply.

"You're.. Being sarcastic." Legolas noted after a moment of staring at his father, his brows knitted at the thought of his father speaking like that to him. It's not if it was an urgent matter, at least as far as he knew. "I'm sorry Ada, Merida had hid from me all morning." Which was a true statement, Merida had recently discovered her love for hiding from her father until he found her, and she had some very _very_ good places where Legolas would have never thought to look. Had the courier that was sent to receive Legolas told him it was an urgent matter, the Prince would have made haste for the mapping room.

With a slight disapproving shake of his head, Thranduil crossed his arms over her silvery robe, beginning to speak. "Yes, well, we have received a distress call from the humankind. Normally I would send a small group to attempt to mend their problems, but it seems the problem is bigger than we expected. I would like you to follow along with our group, who are readying themselves to leave."

"Alright, I will accompany our men. Though, I would like to know what exactly the problem for the humans is." Legolas questioned is father, letting his gold embroidered quiver slide off and down his arm and into his awaiting hand, his free hand reaching within the leather and pulling out his matching leather archery bracers, something he rarely used, but he had deemed it appropriate to wear them on this day. In a flash, he pulled on the beautiful elven bracers that were given to him as a gift from his father, a sort of 'reconciliation' present after they had a quarrel about his constant leaving of the castle when he was younger.

The Elven King took a small sip of the blood red liquid that swooshed silent within the confinements of his golden goblet, his icy blue eyes peering up at his son after he had taken a seat on his throne. "It would seem that the humans are fighting amongst each other, 'districts' I suppose you could call them. I have not the slightest clue which district had called us for help, you would have to speak to Barathon for that information, he's leading the rescue party." He took another small sip of his summer wines, relishing the sweet but strong taste. "Just resolve their issues." With that, Thranduil had waved his son out of the Throne room, and to go look for the party leader.

Slowly, Legolas had descended down the quiet corridor, adjusting his bracers as he deemed fit. _I will have to find a servant to watch over Merida. _He thought to himself, questioning if any of the servants would put up with her constant shenanigans like he did. The Prince hefted the quiver back atop his back and looked down the next corridor, seeing a child with a mop of red hair speaking to somebody. His mind immediately went to 'oh by the Gods, what has she done now.'

His legs rushed his body over to the little girl and the woman she was speaking to, his brows furrowed as he gazed around for any broken furniture or her tiny little arrows wedged into pillars or paintings. Instead he heard giggling from both of the girls, a servant he recognized as Caladhiel, a particularly quiet servant that did her bidding quickly and silently. This was probably the only time he had ever heard her voice.

"Ada!" Merida had squealed when she looked up at him through the curtain of red obnoxious curls that covered her face, her vibrant blue eyes shone through. "She told me she liked my bow!" The six year old exclaimed, vigorously waving her arm around, which swung the bow around wildly. The Prince smiled and ruffled her hair, careful not to lose his fingers in that death trap.

"That is nice." The blonde told her with alacrity, needing to be on his way to accompany Barathon on the rescue mission. "Caladhiel, I dismiss you from any chore that you were given, Merida needs to be watched while I am relieving the humans with Barathon." He watched as she quickly stood from her kneeling position beside Merida and stood attentively in front of him.

"Yes, my Prince." She spoke softly, her voice as soft as velvet, not surprising. Legolas gave her a nod and briskly walked past them, hoping he did not keep the party waiting.

"Barathon!" Legolas called out as he exited the outdoor corridor, seeing one of the Elven leaders standing beside his gallant silver mount, speaking with the other party goers. His dark blue eyes looked up from the rescue team and laid upon the Prince, surprised his father would let him go on a semi risky mission.

A smile surfaced on his face as Legolas made his way over. "Legolas, it is nice to see you coming along." Barathon grinned, slapping his hand down on the Prince's shoulder, earning a smile from him as well. "Mount your horse, we will need to make it to the human districts before the break of dusk." Barathon placed his left foot upon the embellished saddle of his horse, swinging his right leg over the steed. He watched as the Prince followed, the party beginning to leave the grounds of Mirkwood castle.

Barathon and Legolas led the party up at the front, their horses carrying them with a quick trot through the path of the forest. "Barathon, could you tell me what exactly his happening with the humans?" He questioned as he loosened his grip on his gold and silver embroidered reign, looking over to the left at the other blonde elf. "My father said you could inform me."

"Yes, I can." The elf stated, looking over to his right and to the royal prince. "The humans have split up among each other, claiming it is over the use of power and money. Each district, as they call themselves, have different leveled quality life, evidently the poorest district has called for our help, since they cannot protect their own. We are to try and calm the situation, and if that cannot be achieved, we will leave."

Legolas nodded slowly. "I see."

...

"That must be it." Legolas exclaimed as their horses had reached the top of the treacherous hill, their eyes already seeing the billowing smoke rising through the air. A battle was underway int he districts, a perfect time for the party of elves to intervene. His brows knitted together. Their small group of elves, against the districts of humans? He did not know how many numbers the men had, it was surely larger than there rescue group.

Barathon led them closer to the district, he had out a map of the districts that was given to him by a runaway, his sharp eyes scanning over the dirtied parchment. "The district we were called to must be the upcoming one." He stated blankly, slapping his horses flank, causing the horse to rush forward in a hurried manner.

Legolas licked his lips, and he too led his horse closer and faster towards the flaming district.

The groups horses trotted into the destroyed center of the district, the streets filled with rushing people and smoke, demolished parts of houses and dead bodies. "Where is he?!" A distraught woman called out, her face soaked with tears, her hand on her heart as she rushed through the side alleys, praying to the Gods that she would find her son. Legolas turned his gaze away from the woman and dismounted his horse, the streets growing thick with plumes of discolored smoke, not needing his horse to breath it in. "Oh my Gods!" He heard more people call as the ground shook, his hand quickly gripping Barathon's shoulder to gain his balance back.

"The mineshaft! It has exploded!" Screams of pure terror filled the streets as the ground's rumbling ceased, midnight black smoke rose from beyond the district, where the mineshaft was located. "My husband!" More cries of agony filled the elves ears, as Barathon quickly left to find the poor sod that governed this district, leaving Legolas with the orders to rally all the living humans and escort them out of the burning town.

Legolas' heart grew heavy upon seeing dead children laying lifeless in the streets, their injured, even dying parents weeping over them, praying to their Gods for the safety of their souls. The Prince brought his arm up to his mouth as he briskly - and desperately tried to gather the living for their own safety. The elves had to pry many away from their deceased loved ones bodies scattered across the cobblestone roads, but many did not budge, claiming that they did not have anything outside these walls and they would die as well.

"Your people are assembling outside the gated areas, you will be safe." Legolas told a mourning man who had lost his wife, her dirty blonde hair matted with her own blood, something had bludgeoned her skull, cracked it wide open. He looked over his shoulder to the elf, his deep brown eyes filled with despair and hurt, tears fell from his eyes. He reached up and took Legolas' hand, needing help up, an obvious bloody injury on his foot. "Nibenon, take him to the others. He has been injured."

The elf nodded as he gently grabbed the mans arm, quickly escorting him out of the city and towards the other growing group of injured men. Legolas took a deep breath, then let it out with a sigh, clenching his fists as the number of death grew. _How could my father send me here! _He cursed to himself, he had never expected it to be this... This... Terrible! A wave of anguish washed over the Prince, his vision clouded and his judgment disabled, just wishing this had never happened to these people.

"Prince Legolas, check the houses for survivors, Barathon had left with the leader of the district to talk things over with their council!" Nibenon instructed the younger elf when he had returned from helping the man over to the group, pointing over to rows of destroyed, ramshackle houses that lined beside the streets. With a quick nod, he was off in the direction of the burning houses - he knew there were going to be no survivors, and Nibenon knew that too, but just to be sure, he must do this.

He weaved through the town, around the bodies of the dead, and through the mourning men and women that lined the streets. It stunk - and in more ways than one, the smell of burning flesh filled his nostrils, almost causing him to gag. _I must stay strong. _He instructed himself, pressing forward and into the first home he saw.

No one was in the house, at least that he saw. Ripped apart furniture, one part of the ceiling had caught fire but that was it. Satisfied after he had checked all of the rooms he left, hearing a loud crash just as stepped out. Legolas turned back, the house had collapsed. Had he been in there a second longer he would have been crushed by the heavy pillars that could no longer support the flaming roof.

That scared him to no end.

_I must keep moving. _He rushed past the next house, which was completely rubble and ash from the spreading fire, and to the next house in line, which was barely intact. Legolas pushed open the door, causing it to come off it's old hinges and fall straight down onto the ground in a loud boom, spreading the ash and dust off the floor in a flash.

There was a woman laying on the ground in a heap, he rushed over in a second, quickly checking if she had a pulse. _No pulse.._. He thought to himself bitterly as he turned her lifeless body over, revealing a large swollen belly. _She was pregnant too... _He slowly lay her limp arm against her chest as he sadly stood up from her body, his eyes glazed over at the mere thought of what he had just witnessed. _A monstrosity_. He gazed around the room for a brief moment, seeing a carved wooden bow laying against the dirty wall.

Legolas turned on his heels, ready to leave this house when his ears picked up a house from within the house, a slight shuffling noise. He glanced over his shoulder and saw someone that he had not seen, her little face poking out from behind the wall that separated the kitchen from the den.

"Hello..." Legolas said to the young girl quietly, slowly kneeling down and reaching a hand out to the girl, hoping not to scare her away. She merely looked over at him, her tiny fingers clenched the walls roughly. "Come with me, you must leave this house, before it collapses."

She blinked her gray eyes at him and slowly stepped out from behind the wall, her brows knitted when she gave the Prince a once over, not knowing what species he was - she never learned anything except the history of mankind. "Where is my father?" She voiced to him with a raspy, scared voice, though her face was hard as rock, a strong little girl she was.

"I... I don't know.. Where did you see him last?" Guilt washed over him - he knew her father was dead, like most of the other people in this town. Though he was glad she cautiously made her way over to him, still trying to make an opinion of him in her head.

"He was working today."

"Do you know where he worked?" He questioned her quickly as she took his hand, he began leading her out of the house before it too collapsed. She gazed up at him, trying to remember where her father had worked.

"He works in the mines, he's a miner."

He sighed. He was dead alright. Legolas of course did not have the heart to inform this little girl of it, so he quickly led her towards the group of citizens in hopes she had other family stationed there. "Stay here." He instructed her sternly. "You will be safe here, I need to go and help the others."

...

Dawn had broke, yet the blue sky was clouded by the thick black smoke that continued to rise from the town. It was ash by now, the many bodies that lay in the streets were nothing but ash, the houses and building burned down, nothing was left in the fires path. Nothing lived anymore, the only life was found in the other districts, and the group the rescue party managed to save.

"Shame the districts could not come to terms with each other." Barathon had spoke quietly, adjusting his gloved hands, looking back at the people they had saved. "But we did good today."

Legolas nodded slowly, a heavy weight of depression fell upon his shoulders this sad day. He had never experienced anything like this, and he wished never to again. "I suppose." _Depends on how you define good._

Legolas looked back to the group, looking for the small girl that he had found in her house, wondering if she had neighbors or family that would take her in. His eyes darted around, but he found no little girl, he even began asking around, but the people had just shook their heads and looked down. "Nibenon, what of the small girl I had found earlier, where had she gone?"

The elf slowly pointed over to a large tree with some shrubbery underneath, he did not immediately see her, but upon closer and further inspection, he saw her form sitting beside the bush, in the shade of the large tree.

"Hello." He greeted her once again, kneeling a good ways away from her, just in case she needed some space. "Don't you hve any family in that group? Auntie's or uncles?"

She shook her head, her brown braid swooshing back and forth from the motion. "They said my father died." She pointed to the group of people. "My mother died with my baby sister in her belly."

"I'm sorry.." Legolas murmured, placing his palm against the dusty earth beneath him. His blue eyes lifted and immediately something of interest, but he put that aside for now. "What's your name?"

"My name's Katniss.. Katniss Everdeen."

**xxx**

_A/N: Here it is, introducing, Katniss Everdeen! I'm really proud of this chapter, and I hope you all enjoy it! Thank you all so much ! _

_Reviews:_

_B The Shadow Ninja Samurai: I'm sorry, Katniss was already planned to be put it next ! Don't fret, Clint will come ! :) Thanks for the review!_

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_yuki . suou: It's definitely going to be an adventure! Thanks for the review!_


	5. Chapter 5

[Part 2: Katniss]

_ "My name's Katniss.. Katniss Everdeen." _The young girl who went by 'Katniss' had told him, looking up from the small bits of gravel in her fingers and up to the man she had only met once before, not sure exactly what is is he wanted from her. Her brows knitted together, the bright morning sun had finally broke through the thick layer of dark smoke that rose from her town and hit her light gray eyes, causing them to water up.

However, the elf in front of her merely stared at her, contemplating what to say to her next. Legolas' long slender fingers stroked his chin for a moment, his expression puzzled and his eyes clouded over with grief - though there was not a soul amongst their group who did not have a heavy heart at the moment. He let his index finger slowly drag through the dusty earth, creating little swirls into the thin layer of dust, letting his mind idly wander for a moment before speaking up.

"Katniss, I don't remember you bringing along that wooden bow." He commented, he had seen the bow leaning against the deep burgundy wood of the tree she was sitting beside but he did not remember he taking it along when he had escorted her out.

Her eyes flickered when realization had caught up with her that she had been caught. Katniss looked over her shoulder and eyed the beautifully carved wooden bow that had belonged to her father, fiddling with her fingers in the process. "...and that jacket." She heard the blond man speak up again, and then her eyes dropped down the the orange leather jacket that was under her rump to avoid getting her clothing further stained. It also belonged to her father. "When did you get these things..?"

"I went back to my house to get them." She replied blatantly, hoping that would be the end of that, since she knew she wasn't supposed to go back into the town after she had left. Raising her gaze, she saw as the mans brows furrowed, trying to understand how exactly she got in.

"You snuck passed them?" Legolas asked, pointing his finger to the two elven men that stood outside the gates to the town, where he presumed the only entrance was. Apparently he was wrong - and he knew it once a small sly smile surfaced on her face.

"There's a hole in the fence, I climbed through it." Katniss informed him, idly pointing to the scrape on her knee through her torn pants as evidence that she had actually crawled through a part in the fence, and apparently disregarded paying attention to where her knee was. "They were my dads, I had to get them.. He used to take me hunting all the time.."

_I wont bring that up again. _Legolas noted to himself as the child grew silent, letting her fingers run down the bow slowly. He looked over his shoulder, seeing Barathon return to their group, along with Nibenon and the others regrouping.

Looking back over to Katniss, he contemplated on what to do with her. "Come on Katniss, the group of your people are meeting up." Legolas watched as she stood up silently, picking up her worn leather jacket and pulling it over her shoulders before grabbing her fathers wooden bow, beginning to walk alongside the tall elf. She clutched the scratched up bow with both of her hands, her small legs quickly bringing her over to where the other elven men were speaking to her group of people.

She stopped behind the large group of people - she didn't care what the elven man was saying to everybody, nor did it even apply to her current situation. She had no where to go, no family to be with, no distant relatives that would take her in so they could sell her. Katniss decided she would be a runaway, shoot for her lunch, go from town to town - yet she was only six years old. And she doubted she would be let loose from this group.

Legolas silently shuffled over to Barathon, who was arranging his belongings while Nibenon spoke out to the group. "Barathon." Legolas whispered when he came by the elfs side, raising a single brow to him for a moment. "The young girl whose family had died, what do we do with her?" He questioned as he helped Barathon pack his things back into the satchel adjoined to the horse saddle, his fingers nimbly tying the strings back together.

Barathon was silent, thinking for a moment. "We were only sent here to help this district, we did what we could, now we must leave back to Mirkwood." He told him softly, meeting eye to eye with the man. "There is nothing we can do."

The Prince's brows met in the middle for a moment. _Nothing we can do?_ "What? Just leave that child by herself? Her family was just _killed_, Barathon."

Barathon merely chuckled at Legolas' displeasure. "Then you, the caretaker of lost children, can take her in." Barathon laughed heartily, slapping his hand down on the now angry Prince's shoulder then walking away with a prolonged chuckle.

Now - Legolas could handle a lot of things. He certainly was not a 'caretaker of lost children', certainly not! His father Thranduil had told him to take Merida in, and he did, and he loved her. She was his own daughter and he treated her as such. She was no 'lost child' to him. His nose crinkled at the thought.

He crossed his arms over his chest and thought for a few more moments, silently contemplating many things to himself as Nibenon continued to speak to the people with his loud yet soft voice. There were many things Legolas could do at this point, but most he was not pleased with nor did he have the heart to do. There was A) Just leaving the poor girl who had just lost her family here to defend herself from Gods know what. B) Sharing his groups supplies then leaving her off on her own accord. C) Take her back to Mirkwood with his group and explain to his father why he had yet another child to take care of and hope all goes well.

In all honesty Legolas wished he was not faced with such a situation he had hefted upon his shoulders at the moment. Nobody else cared for the well being of this child - for they were not the ones who had brought her through the burning town and made sure she was always trailing behind at all times. He'd feel _guilty_ if he had left her out here with horrendous monsters lurking around the corners, hell, she did not even have any arrows to go with her bow!

When the elf Nibenon had finished addressing the people, telling them directions to the nearest town with a suitable inn and giving them maps, Legolas had slunk around to the back of the group, where Katniss was standing silently to herself, not paying attention to the speech.

"Katniss, were you listening to his speech?" Legolas questioned as he looked down at the girl, her head immediately snapping upwards in an embarrassed motion - of course she had not been listening. She promptly shook her head as a response, her face scrunching up. "That's alright, because you don't need to be leaving with these people."

Katniss looked back up to him, now her expression showed confusion, as to what the heck was going on. "Where am I going?"

"You're going to be coming back with us, to my castle."

"A castle?" She questioned with such wonder in the tone of her voice, her eyes growing big at the thought of going back to a castle. "Where's the castle?"

"It's in the forest, in the Woodland realm." Well, there was more to it than just a 'forest', but to save time (since his group was already packing) he would just tell her that basic information.

She liked forests. "Okay, I'll go."

...

The ride back towards the castle was quiet, quiet as could be between the group. Katniss had got her own horse, that she had fell in love with the moment she met him, and trotted in front of Legolas' horse, keeping a steady pace behind the group. Barathon would occasionally look over his shoulder and catch a glimpse of Legolas with a smug smile on his face that screamed 'I knew it! I knew you would take the girl!'

He meant fun, but Legolas got the point the first time he had done that.

"Is that the entrance?" Katniss piped up the first time during the whole ride back, pointing out towards a large opening through the thicket of upcoming trees, it looked rather inviting to the young girl. Legolas nodded, and the group began to turn towards the opening.

"It is, then the castle not that much further."

It seemed that Katniss quite enjoyed the small ride through the forest, her big gray eyes skittered around, viewing the trees, the birds chirping in the trees, and the beautiful leaves on trees. She'd reach out once in a while and a small butterfly would perch upon her index finger, sticking around for a moment before fluttering their wings and flying back to the small patches of flowers.

"Is.. Is that it?" Katniss gasped as the castle of Mirkwood came into her view, her gray eyes widening at the thought of ever stepping foot into a place like that. She whipped her head over her shoulder, raising a brown brow at the elf.

Legolas nodded at her with a gentle smile. "Indeed it is." He pet his horses mane and it stopped beside the large stable, where the rest of the group had rested their horses and dismounted. He swung his leg around the side of the horse ad gently hoped off, petting it's mane one more time before walking over to Katniss' horse, beginning to help her off the horse.

"So, this is your castle?" She questioned as she unbuckled the small strap that held her bow to the side of the horse, peering up at him as she clutched it tightly.

"Well it's my fathers, he's the Elven King."

"The what?" She asked curiously, her brows knitted together in confusion as to what an 'Elven King' was. Legolas merely laughed, not knowing whether she was serious or not.

"The Elven King, he is the King of the Elves." This sprouted even more confusion in Katniss, but she'd rather not make herself sound more stupid, so she stayed quiet as she followed the man towards the castle. She clambered up the large steps, which she was absolutely sure were made for men for his height because they were huge, and tried to keep up her pace alongside him, though his legs were much larger than her own.

Legolas tried to slow down, but even his slowest walk was a bit much for her. That's when he spotted her - Caladhiel walking down the corridor with a certain red-head by her side, little Merida was hopping on the site with excitement when she was him appear. That's when the Princess sprinted out towards him, with Caladhiel coolly walking towards the small group slowly with her arms snuggly burrowed in her long dress sleeves.

"Ada! You're back!" Merida announced with glee, glomping his leg with a big grin on her face, not noticing the other girl behind the elf. "You were gone a long time!"

"It was only a day Merida." Legolas informed her with a smile, ginving her a small hug back, knowing that he must be on his way to speak to his father. "Caladhiel, I am grateful you could watch her for the time I was gone. I hope Merida wasn't too much of a hassle." The Prince stepped aside for a moment, revealing the brunette that shyly stood there with nothing but a worn hide jacket and a wooden bow, looking down to her feet. "The last thing I ask of you would be to show Katniss here the guest bedroom in my wing of the castle."

Merida cocked her head to get a better glimpse of the girl around her age, quickly pulling her wild red mane aside and out of her line of sight. The red-head smiled gently at the girl, still clutching her Ada's pant leg, she shyly waved at Katniss with her free hand. "Hello, I'm Merida!"

Katniss brought her gaze up from the flooring of the castle and met eyes with the girl across from her, blinking and figuring out her first impression of the girl. "Hi." She did a small wave before looking around, hearing the footsetps of the blonde woman approaching. She gazed back and the woman smiled at her, offering Katniss her hand, she watched as Legolas left quickly down the corridor.

That's when she began to get remotely nervous. It didn't start when she left with strangers of a complete different race, that's only because she got her own horse and she really wanted to ride one, it also did not start when she entered a foreign building with him. But him leaving her with a woman she did not know (though she did not know Legolas) made her nervous, and anxious that he was leaving her.

Katniss sucked it up, taking a deep breath and placing her dusty palm against the womans soft delicate hand, looking up at her face. "Come now." The woman said with a soft soothing voice, much like Katniss' own mother, her eyes comforting Katniss in a way she didn't recognize. "I will show you your room."

Legolas proceeded quickly to his fathers Throne room, needing to speak a few selected words at him, some ill fitted for the King of the Elves. With a quick movement of his arms, the Throne room doors were swung open, revealing the blonde man sitting on his throne with a glass of his summer wines in his hand.

"Legolas, you've returned, and all in one piece at that." Thranduil greeted his dear son with a stern (as usual) face, taking a sip of the deep red wine of his, keeping his eyes locked with Legolas'. "Tell me, how did you fare on this mission?"

Legolas narrowed his eyes at the man in front of him, feeling anger stir within him. "Did you send me on such a horrid mission on purpose, Ada?" He took a deep breath. _No father should ever send their son into such a terrible scene! _

"Hmm? What do you mean?" Thranduil questioned, looking up from the delicate sill of his glass. The Prince couldn't tell if he was playing stupid to avoid an angry son, or downright didn't know about the deaths in the district.

"You know what I mean, most of the people had _died_ there!"

He watched angrily as Thranduil licked his thin lips, looking down at the liquid in his glass before giving his son a proper answer that he wanted. "It was time for you to see what happens outside of our Woodland realm Legolas." He spoke clearly, yet he continued looking down into his glass. "I believed it to be the perfect opportunity."

Legolas drew in a breath. "I watched people die, I saw their flesh burning off their bones, and children being crushed to death by falling pieces of their own homes!" He somewhat understood why his father had sent him out of the castle and beyond his shooting area in the clearing of the forest, he was still a young elf, and needed to experience real life things - but he was not prepared to witness what he saw.

"Well I am sorry you had to see those things." The King put it simply, letting his eyes slowly wander over to his son. "Did you at least manage to save any lives while you were there? I would hope you weren't just standing there watching those people in horror the whole time."

"We managed to rally up a small group of people, yes. I had to bring one back with us."

This piked the Kings interest, a dark brow raising. "Oh? Who would that be?" He was fine with it. Give them some supplies and send them on their way, which is very courteous - at least Thranduil thought so.

"A little girl, her name is Katniss." Legolas began to explain, watching both of his fathers brows raising. "Her mother and father were both killed, she also did not have any relatives to take her in."

"...And so I imagine you are going to ask if she may live here at the castle?"

A small smug smile surfaced on Legolas' lips as he watched his father grow a tad angry. "I am not asking if she may live here, I am informing you of this new made plan."

Thranduil let his free hand rub between his eyes. _Is this what I get for introducing Legolas to 'the joys of parenting'? _He thought to himself dully, closing his eyes for a moment. "I thought perhaps one child for you to tend to would be enough?" One child was certainly enough for Thranduil to handle. _P__erhaps I am at fault for this - letting him take in Merida was possibly an awful idea. Who knows how many children he will be bringing back in the near future. _

"I could not let her go on her own out there, she would have been slain almost immediately." Legolas crossed his arms over his chest, growing weary of his fathers stubbornness. "She had lost everything, Ada, she's staying here."

Thranduil took a deep silent breath in, rolling his eyes, (though cautious not to let Legolas see) and took another sip of his drink. "I will give this needing child a chance." Knowing Merida, he did not need two absolute noise makers running around his castle. "And only one chance."

**xxx**

_A/N: I actually quite enjoyed this chapter, mainly because I absolutely love Thranduil? He's such a sassy little thing. :) I also wanted to say thank you guys for the continuous support through this story, the reviews/follows/favs mean a lot to me! Keep reviewing! _

_Reviews: _

_TS17isme: I'm glad you think it's cute (I try hard!) and I am also glad you love it! I hope you liked this chapter! Thanks for the review!_

_yuki . suou: Bwahaha, yes, it's getting more interesting ! Just wondering, is the 'o' on your keyboard not working? ;) Thanks for the review!_

_Guest: What about Kili ? (I totally love him) Thanks for the review!_


	6. Chapter 6

[Part 2: Katniss]

It was not a secret that the Elven King Thranduil loved to take strolls through his woodland realm, away from the ruckus of his castle tucked away in the trees, so he could connect with the nature he was surrounded by. This usually happens early in the morning, when the dew was still fresh and the overnight fog lingered in-between the trees. This brought the usually stressed out King some serenity, peace of mind, and overall quiet surroundings - away from his child and 'grand-children.'

This morning just happened to be a morning where the King needed some alone time with nature, taking a nice long, slow stroll through the trees and bushes, calmly breathing in the fresh scent of budding flowers and fresh burgundy bark. Thranduil didn't need his eyes open to walk through his forest, he knew it all by heart, imagining all the passing wildlife and berry bushes he was passing. The King had his arms crossed behind his back as he continued to walk peacefully, not thinking anything could ruin this morning.

Legolas really couldn't say no to this girl, he really couldn't. Merida had forced him and Katniss (by hand) out to the clearing in the woods so all three of them could practice their archery with the best archer they know (of course that being Legolas). Katniss usually stayed quiet about such things, the thought out going of to the woods to practice archery brought forth the memories of her father and she did not wish to relive the happiest moments of her life. However, she tagged along because she would have wanted to show her father how good she could be at archery, and she was determined to take after him.

Katniss' long wooden bow dragged along the earth beneath her feet, seeing as it was way too big for her body. Her gray eyes watched as the red-head shot an arrow that actually made it onto the archery target, though it did not land on any of the colored lines. Still, the girl remained happy with herself, a big grin plastered on her face as she raced back towards the elf proudly. Katniss' nose crinkled. Her father would always applaud her when her arrow had reached the bullseye, which always came to her easily. Katniss didn't understand why Merida was proud of herself for barely making the target, but she kept that to herself.

"Do you want to go?" The young brunette was snapped out of her thoughts when Merida had bounded up and in front of her, her big blue eyes staring at her with curiosity. She had her arms outstretched, offering her the arrows that Katniss currently did not have. Hesitantly, Katniss reached out and took the few arrows out of Merida's hand, looking them over briefly before letting her eyes look up at the target.

She could do this, she knew she can. If she could go out hunting with her dad she could do this. Katniss held her bow confidently, notching her arrow to the string and drew back with all her strength. Closing one eye, she focused in on the bullseye of the target, taking a deep breath and let loose her arrow. It was almost like slow motion, as the arrow flew through the arrow and landed on the wooden target. Right on the line. The line between the bullseye and the next best thing.

Katniss didn't expect anything less from her abilities, though the red-head and blonde seemed baffled at her already great skill. Katniss laid her bow back down onto the grassy earth and looked up at the elf before her, a small smug smirk finding it's way to her lips. "That was amazing!" Merida bounced up to the girl with a large grin on her face, a pang of jealousy growing within her. Jealousy mixed with an urge to compete with this new girl.

Merida ran back and grabbed her bow, notching her arrow quickly and shooting it off towards the wooden target. She missed, once again. The arrow flew off towards the tree line and far into the woods, probably never to be seen again. "Darn." She mumbled, her heart growing heavy at the thought that she may never be as good as her Ada or Katniss. She dropped her bow and flew back, landing right on her bottom, disappointed and a tad angry that no matter how much she practiced, she couldn't get it right.

"Next time, Merida." Legolas attempted to calm his adopted daughter down with a warm smile as he walked over to the target, wrapping his long slender fingers around an arrow and gently pulled it out. He watched as she turned her nose up and her brows met in the middle, obviously upset she wasn't on the same level as the other girl behind her.

"I'll go find the arrows." Katniss proclaimed as she slung her fathers bow over her shoulder and tucked a few arrows into her quiver, for protection. She watched as the elf nodded in her direction, letting her run off into the thicket of the trees.

The soft twigs beneath her feet snapped loudly as she trudged through the dense bushes and trees, making it her goal to find that lost arrow. "There it is.." She whispered to herself as she bounded off towards the arrow stuck in the tree. Katniss wrapped her fingers around the wood of the arrow, and to her surprise, it was just a twig. "Hmph." She grumped as she looked around vigorously, the corners of her mouth curled downwards as she snapped her had every which was possible to find that arrow.

Small, low cracks were heard, and Katniss' ears picked up on them right away, her head snapping in the direction it was heard. Her heart beat slowed down as she concentrated her breathing, seeing smooth antlers poke out from behind a large oak tree. "A buck." She whispered almost inaudibly, slowly and quietly pulling her bow off her shoulder and notching the arrow onto the string.

She steadied her breathing again, as the buck moved his head around the base of the tree, his beady black eyes not yet seeing the girl who's aim was concentrated on him. Katniss pulled the string back to her cheek, made sure her aim was spot on, and shot.

A large thud was heard, as the buck fell lifeless to the earth beneath it, a perfect shot from the human girl. Katniss grinned to herself as she bounded up to the dead buck, pulling the arrow out from between it's eyes and dropping it into her quiver, eyes still glued to the animal before her. Wrapping her hands around it's antlers, she used all her strength to pull it out of the trees and bushes, into the clearing of the field.

Legolas took in a sharp, deep breath as he saw the little girl emerge from the woods, with a _dead animal._ Normally he would have just told her to put it back in the woods, but behind him, stood an awestruck King.

Thranduil's eye twitched at the sight of the girl dragging a dead animal from the woods, _his woods_. He has a strong bond with the nature surrounding his castle - why wouldn't he, he was the King of Mirkwood and home to many different animals. That she slaughtered.

His cold blue eyes wandered over to his only son, to which they were met with a shrug from the younger elf. "I trust you went over rules with this child, Legolas?"

Legolas gulped and thought for a moment. "Well, no, not yet." He stuttered, not knowing how much trouble he was going to be in - or how much trouble Katniss was going to be in. He looked up to his Ada with his big blue eyes, wishing with everything he had his father would not kick her out of the castle.

Thranduil rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly and closed his eyes angrily. "One more chance, Legolas, one more chance." With that, he took in a deep breath and turned away quickly, not being able to bear the view of the dead buck any longer. "Give that poor thing a proper burial, will you? It's the least you could do."

Inwardly, Legolas grinned. Yet he knew he would have to have a serious chat with Katniss in the next few minutes. He turned around with a small sigh and motioned for her to come over to him, and she did with quickness.

"Katniss.." He began, kneeling beside her gently, looking into her stormy gray eyes. "We don't kill animals around here, it's very important that we keep them around."

"But I always used to hunt bucks with my father." Her brows knitted together, bringing her arm up to shield her eyes from the beating down sun. "I don't see what's wrong with it."

"Meat isn't a large part of our diet here, if that's what you were thinking." He attempted to put it as nicely as he could, not wanting to stamp allover what she was raised on. "You can still hunt, just when I take you and Merida out of the Woodland Realm. Alright?" Legolas watched as she took a breath and nodded to him, trying to understand the circumstances.

"Alright, I guess."

**xxx**

_A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews, they are really happeh and make me happy :) I'm sorry this chapter isn't very long, I just wanted to establish where Katniss was at with adapting to the no hunting rules. :P_

_Reviews: _

_B The Shadow Ninja Samurai: I'm sorrrrry, just a few more chapters foccusing on Katniss and Clint will be all up in the hizouse! :) Thanks for the review!_

_daddys number 1 girl: Thank you and thanks for the review! _

_yuki . suou: Yes, I have officially dubbed him as the caretaker of lost children~ Thanks for the review! _

_Ninniachel: Thanks so much! And thanks for the review! _

_Anna the Lynx: Yes! Sister powers unite ! :) Thanks for the review!_


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